


This Darkness That Haunts Us

by Aya_Diefair



Series: What Dreams Become Series [4]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Crossover, Alternate Universe - Timeline Shifts, Autistic Harry Potter, Autistic Tony Stark, Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie), Chaotic Neutral Loki, Desi/Black Harry Potter, Dubious Open Ending, Gen, M/M, Master of Death Harry Potter, Non-Consensual Mind Invasions, Not Captain America Friendly, Not Maximoff Friendly, On Screen Major Character Injury, Parent Loki (Marvel), Parent Tony Stark, References Canon Traumatic Childhoods, Teacher Loki, Teenager Harry Potter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-19
Updated: 2021-03-19
Packaged: 2021-03-28 18:08:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,202
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30143520
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aya_Diefair/pseuds/Aya_Diefair
Summary: “You are still a kid, and I said no,” Tony replied sharply, to which Harry rolled his eyes and crossed his arms in reluctant defeat. Being the Master of Death had its perks, but Tony still wanted to protect him from the unknown.
Relationships: Harry Potter & Loki, Harry Potter & Tony Stark, Loki/Tony Stark
Series: What Dreams Become Series [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1717210
Comments: 6
Kudos: 59
Collections: MC4A Year 4, Monthly Challenges for All





	This Darkness That Haunts Us

**Author's Note:**

> **Legal Disclaimer:** My work is my own creative intelligence and property, but I do not own the original source material it stems from (I wouldn't be writing fanfiction if it was). The opinions and interpretations of characters reflected in my stories may not follow what is portrayed from the source material. Please don't sue me, I'm a stay at home mom.
> 
> **Author’s Note:** Here we are with my next installment of Harry Potter/Avengers and Iron Dad Tony. This was a bit unexpected to have done already, as I have been hyper focused on finishing _What Dreams Become_ before more of these off-shoot pieces wanted to be made. Well, this one was sparked by a competition prompt I was participating in, and unfortunately the word count restriction suffocated the idea, so I had to shelf it for using it in that.
> 
> Alas, that will not discourage me from sharing it! It gained an additional 3,000 words, and there is a lot that happens in here that will be fleshed out in the next multi-chapter piece I am planning out, but the gist is there, and I hope you all enjoy it.  
>  **Word Count:** 6,191

* * *

**This Darkness That Haunts Us**

Harry never dreamed of having anybody care for him, and if it hadn't been for a science event Mrs. Figg had taken him to about six years ago, then he never would have discovered there were people out there who actually had concern and interest about his well being.

He had a chance to meet with Tony Stark during that fateful day. The man he once admired from afar shockingly recognized him and questioned his name. That man happened to also be his Godfather and someone who knew his parents who had abruptly disappeared from his life, completely losing contact and left no trace of ever existing.

Thankfully, though, Tony had fought and managed to get custody of Harry when the boy was eight-years-old with the help of two brilliant women; Andromeda Tonks and Claudia Zabini. These two witches had stumbled upon him during an accidental magic case and divulged the fate of Lily and James Potter. They were miracle workers, for a lack of a better term. A lot had changed for both of them in a short amount of time, and all for the better.

But the biggest change that stood out to the now-sixteen-year-old was to still come to terms with and accept the fact he was the Master of Death. Turned out he really _was_ more than just a boy after all.

Of course, having a run-in with a Norse god roughly five years ago was a major turning point for both Harry and Tony's lives. It was unexpected, but was the catalyst that fully awakened Harry's power. It was this encounter in Stark Tower that caused him to fall into the Darkness where he met the Watcher—the observer of all Life and Death. It was then he learned about his role as the Master of Death, his four servants (the Watcher, the Guardian, the Reaper, and the Teacher), the Infinity Stones, and Deathly Hallows—all were pieces of him that fractured from his soul during the Rebirth.

Loki ended up becoming Harry's Teacher; the one chosen to help teach, guide, and help Harry harness all that came with the title of Master. After accidently (and unknowingly) releasing Loki from the scepter's influence, and because of this new status, all charges from Earth and Asgard against Loki were dropped. He was untouchable, and not everyone liked that new gifted status.

Harry learned so much from Loki (and even from Andromeda and Claudia who kept in touch and visited regularly), this allowed him to fine-tune himself in several ways. It was remarkable what having a stable, loving family and home life does to a soul, as well as a Teacher who could show him how to control his overwhelming abilities and magic. Harry knew Tony, his father, went to countless lengths to find him someone who could understand and help him before Loki came along; from Professor Xavier and his school, the Ancient One and her Mystic Arts, to Dumbledore at Hogwarts. They simply didn't quite fit the part after their brief trial periods.

Ironically, it took an actual god from another world to help him.

Tony was protective of Harry, with good reason, so when he and Thor approached Loki to take Harry to Asgard for a few days to 'refine his abilities with Frigga', Harry and Loki were suspicious as to what they were hiding from them. Loki eventually accepted, and they weren't wrong about having Harry meet Frigga. He adored her almost immediately, and she took quite an interest in him as well. He looked forward to going back to visit when the opportunity presented itself.

Going to a new planet had been a surreal experience… But it's what was discovered when he came back was something he had never imagined; Ultron

Upon their return, Harry was immediately on high alert from seeing the state the Avengers Tower was in. He could feel the fading traces of the scepter, the same feeling when he met Loki, but he knew it was lost during the fall of SHIELD. Something happened during their absence, and no one was willing to divulge the information, which wasn't a surprise. No one except Tony and Harry trusted Loki, and he didn't need words for either of them to know that an experiment had gone very wrong, and everyone blamed Tony for it.

"You're leaving? But we just got back," Harry whined after listening to the very edited debriefing of what happened.

He never liked Tony having to tend to Avenger-related problems, not because he didn't think it wasn't needed, but based on how he's seen SHIELD treat him. He hated seeing his father always being roped in to clean up their messes. This time, however, Harry knew this incident was different, that Tony was blaming himself for it, and once he set his mind on wanting to fix a mistake he believes he made, there was no way to change it.

"We should go," Loki suggested, keeping his attention focused on Tony, ignoring the glares and scoffs from the others. "If these enhanced beings are as dangerous as you say, why not bring your own to the fight?"

Harry perked up at this. "Yeah. I have the control and know-how now. I can handle them."

Bruce tilted his head at this realization, having experienced how Harry could easily handle the Hulk during a training incident gone wrong. He wiggled a lazy finger between Harry and Loki while looking at Tony. "They do have a point… We don't know what we are up against. And you know me in tight quarters is a no-go."

"Uh, no. Absolutely not. You two are staying here where it is safe," Tony deadpanned, shooting a pointed look Bruce's way for backing them.

Harry scoffed. "I'm not a kid anymore, I can help!"

"You _are_ still a kid, and I said no," Tony replied sharply, to which Harry rolled his eyes and crossed his arms in reluctant defeat.

Loki moved closer to Tony when he started to pace in a tight circle and placed a hand against the nape of his neck. Harry watched as Tony stopped dead in his tracks, allowing the stress from his body to melt away as he leaned into the god and closed his eyes. It was admirable to see how Loki knew how to calm people down, having a similar tactic used on him when he became over-stressed. It was something Harry also learned and taught to use on the Hulk in the form of a few select words (the Lullaby, as the team titled it), followed with a specific touch on the arm and hand.

This interaction, however, was more intimate. Harry knew that Loki and Tony's physical affection always made the others squirm, making the two all the more eager to flaunt it in front of everyone. It was always amusing to watch. But, much to Harry's disappointment, no one else attempted to persuade Tony to allow Harry to tag along on this mission. Not even Loki.

"We will entertain ourselves," Loki said soothingly, reassuringly. "Go play hero, Merchant."

Harry groaned and flopped on the couch to pout while everyone quickly scattered to gather their gear before heading to the quinjet. He didn't even bother to wave them off, instead he glowered out the window as the jet took off into the skies. Loki started humming to himself as he magicked the debris away and repaired furniture and window panes. Harry took the opportunity to let off some steam and quickly got to his feet, rounding on Loki as he approached the couch.

"Why didn't you insist we go with them?" he snapped. "I'm not a baby, I can handle myself. You've said so yourself. So why not make them take us? We've been benched on everything and it's getting annoying. Why train if you can't practice?"

Despite all the training he's had, Harry could see the shadows vibrate in his peripherals, ebbing into his conscience. Magic staticed under his skin, causing his hand to twitch uncontrollably. He was _mad,_ and he wasn't going to hide it. The smirk on Loki's face almost set him off until he saw his hands move. The sign language refocused Harry into translating the message, even though he knew it was his very own calming lullaby, it always worked, giving him that brief pause in his thoughts to silence them and to calm down.

"I never said we weren't going," Loki said after seeing Harry had settled. "Playing maid is quite boring. And the absence of JARVIS is…"

"Unnerving," Harry finished, swallowing hard at being reminded of the loss.

They gave a moment of silence before Loki gestured for Harry to follow him. "Let's go play hero."

* * *

It didn't take them long to figure out the Avengers headed for South Africa to cut off Ultron and the Maximoff's. Even without JARVIS, Harry had become quite tech savvy and skilled in worming his way into information otherwise kept from him. Sometimes his father didn't fully realize how influential he could be.

Loki and Harry went through everything on what happened and who they were encountering. It wasn't much to go off of, but it was enough for Harry to feel a pang of anger flash through him in realizing the hostility from the team toward Tony and Bruce was _sort of_ justified. At least he had the sense to understand that what they were dealing with wasn't what his father originally planned at all, instead it was taken by a mysterious sentience and bastardized. Why would Tony want to willingly make an Earth-hating superbot?

"We're here," Loki announced, pointing out the quinjet neatly parked on the coastline.

Just to rub it in, they landed right next to it and were met with Bruce exiting the quinjet.

"What're you—"

"Playing hero," Loki said, cutting Bruce off. "Can't leave all the fun to you lot."

Harry flashed Bruce a mischievous smile before he immediately dropped the playful gesture. Honing in on one of the ships just offshore, he could sense remnant amounts of the scepter inside.

"They're already here," Harry said, jerking his head in the direction of the ship. "We better go now."

Loki nodded, looking to Bruce. "Coming along?"

Bruce was unamused by the question. "You of all people know me and small spaces do not end well."

"Shame. I was looking forward to a good show."

Harry levitated both he and Loki up to the deck and made quick work on finding a way in. There was commotion already underway, and both Harry and Loki jumped right into the middle of it. Someone was moving inhumanly fast, disrupting the team's attempts to do much of anything. A large robot was hyper focused on Tony, and the ship's crew scrambled to evacuate.

Harry could feel the power radiate everywhere but he couldn't track Pietro in order to stop him. Loki went off to do his own thing, leaving Harry to his own devices. He observed the situation for a moment, witnessing Thor throwing his hammer and Pietro being being dumb enough to grab it and be thrown off his feet because of it. Harry jumped from the upper rails down to a now dazed Pietro and grabbed him by the shoulder.

"You have something that isn't yours," Harry hissed, eyes ominously glowing an endless darkness as tendrils grew from his fingers and twisted their way into the man's ears, nose, mouth, and eyes.

The power obtained from the scepter was pulled from him, yet during this extraction, Harry could see he had potential, dormant genes that was tapped into and harnessed. Once recovered, he would need proper training on how to handle this new awakened mutation. There was an intense feeling that struck Harry once he released Pietro now passed out on the floor. It felt like a punch to the gut and it took him a minute to recompose himself. Steve appeared on the scene then, surveying the area.

"Knew you two troublemakers couldn't resist," he said, gesturing to the unconscious Pietro. "What happened to him?"

"He'll be fine," Harry assured, getting to his feet. "Don't you have vibranium to guard?"

Steve nodded, turning his attention back to the droids after the loot. Harry felt very sick again, the other Maximoff must be using a large amount of her power. It was the only explanation, and he needed to stop it immediately.

He encountered Thor on the second level, and despite sensing the magic around him, he appeared unaffected. Harry didn't think much of it considering he was a god and all, so he quickly moved on, needing to close in on Wanda.

Natasha looked like she'd seen better days, and after Harry placed his hand on her hand to pull the magic from her mind, he gently sat her on the stairs and continued to navigate through the ship.

Harry would be lying if he said what was going down was a cakewalk, quite the opposite in fact. Not only was the surge of power being expelled by Wanda when she hit someone sent him into a wave of nausea, but siphoning the magic back also took its own toll. He could feel himself tiring from how much focus and energy it took to tap into each person. This meant that he was also growing agitated, and after recovering Steve and Thor (who clearly couldn't resist such power, either), he saw that Clint thwarted Wanda's attempt on him, much to Harry's relief. Dealing with four people was exhausting, but what was one more?

Harry approached a dazed Wanda, gesturing for Clint to stand down and tend to the others while he dealt with her. Kneeling beside her, he waited for her to stop clutching at her head to notice him. Startled by his cold demeanor and stony expression on his face, she tried crawling backward and away from him. He stopped her with a firm, rigid hand on her shoulder.

"Pietro! Brother!" she shouted, the fear wavering her voice.

"Your brother is incapacitated," he said coldly, eyes darkening when seeing hers turn red. "You think messing with people's minds is fun, eh? I dare you to look. You won't like what you see."

He could feel her try and invade his head, but his annoyance with her had him tap into hers instead, the black tendrils snaked their way in like they'd done with everyone else. Flashes of her and her brother's childhood appeared, their grief and anger built over themselves as the years passed, and their burning desire to seek revenge drove them to join two of the worst tyrants in modern history to seek it.

It was a pity that they didn't try and find a healthier, more natural way to discover their gifts. Harry could sympathize with them—almost anyway. He never did want to watch the world burn because of the circumstances he faced that were out of his control. There wasn't even a fleeting thought to resent Tony for taking so long to find him while he suffered under the hands of the Dursleys, nor did he resent Loki for being controlled by an otherworldly being. If only the Maximoff's took that route instead of a petty vengeful one, perhaps they wouldn't be on the wrong side of the fight now.

Harry made sure to show her his past, his suffering and hopelessness, his acceptance of what was and how he coped with it. And when rescue came, he made the most of every second of freedom since then to bring positive change and aid to the less fortunate and to protect those who suffered. He showed her how, despite not knowing how to control his own gifts, the people around him strived to find ways to learn and adapt, and patience and preservation led him to his own Teacher.

Harry left her in tears as he pulled the remains of the scepters power from her and watched as the red dissipated from her eyes. He flexed his fingers lazily in front of her, allowing the tendrils to linger around the red energy it pulled from her.

"I'm sorry," Wanda whispered, starting to curl into herself, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I'm sorry…"

"As you should be," Harry said, tone flat, emotionless. "You won't be able to violate anyone anymore."

Harry clutched his hand closed over the red ball of energy, snuffing it out like a candlelight. When he focused back on reality, Clint had gathered the downed team and Loki returned with a bound Klaue and barely conscious Pietro in tow. Tony landed not too long after, looking rather battered, dishealved, and maybe a little peeved at seeing Harry and Loki present. He examined the room carefully, letting out a heavy breath at the state of everything.

"Ultron's gone," Tony said. "As is the vibranium, I see."

"Wanda hit nearly everyone," Harry interjected immediately, wanting to quickly try and explain everything to cover the fact he disobeyed. "I tried getting to them as soon as she did, but there was still some psychological damage done. The fast one—Pietro—I got him almost immediately. Loki got Africa's Most Wanted, and—"

Tony put up a hand and Harry stopped talking immediately. He glanced over to Loki, who gave him a slow nod of approval to counter the disappointed look on Tony's face.

Steve grew aware enough to respond to Tony in that moment. "You let Ultron get away again?"

Tony scoffed. "He targeted Bruce. Intervention was needed before things got real bad." He pointed to Harry and then Loki. "And you two weren't here last I checked."

"We—"

"Considering how things have turned out _with_ us here," Loki cut in, moving closer to Tony. "I feel like it would have been far worse without our convenient arrival."

Tony gave that tilted nod he did when he knew he'd been beat. Harry gave a silent victory, hoping that it meant he wouldn't get lectured over it later.

"How's Bruce?" Loki asked.

"Nothing a hot tub and calm music can't handle." Tony made a hand gesture to catch Harry's attention. "That lullaby trick works wonders even pre-Hulk, by the way."

Harry smiled, glad to see it was a success. The secret to it, which many didn't know, was trust between the performer and the target.

"Do you know where he might've gone?" Steve pressed on.

Tony raised his hands and dropped them to his sides. Harry filtered through what he had seen from Wanda's mind, hoping to pull something from it.

"I know where he is."

"Brilliant, wonderful. Where?" Tony asked, tone laced with eagerness to end this entire debacle.

Thor, however, seemed very lost in thought, which pulled Harry's attention to him instead of answering right away. Loki seemed to have picked up on it as well, turning his gaze to him but did not leave Tony's side.

"Brother?"

Thor blinked a few times, coming back to the present to scan over the team. "My vision… there was something strange about it, as if it was trying to show me yet hide it at the same time."

He and Loki shared a look, and based on how Loki's face turned grim upon eye contact, Harry had a sneaking suspicion that he knew what Thor was talking about.

"Do you think it is important for what we are up against?" Steve asked, always wanting to keep everyone on track.

"I am not sure," Thor admitted, thoughts drifting again. "But I feel it will need answers, and I will not find them here on Earth."

"We need you here, Thor," Steve said firmly, "If your vision was like the rest of ours, it meant nothing and was only to mess with us. If you leave now our mission could fail."

Harry felt the tension rise between everyone. Thor shifted his weight to appear more defensive as he stared down Steve, who didn't waver in his own stance. Everyone else idly watched to see what would go down. Fighting amongst each other was counterproductive and wasting valuable time, it was what Ultron wanted.

"What if I can have you relive the dream right here? Will that help?" Harry asked, interrupting their little spat to focus on Thor. "Because fighting each other is not getting us anywhere."

"You are capable of this?" Thor questioned, hesitant at the offer.

Harry couldn't help but scoff at his doubt. "I apprehended the Maximoff's and pulled the witch's curse from your heads, what has you doubt that I can't put them back?"

"Don't," Steve said sharply, turning his stern glare to Harry. "It is not safe to mimic something that messes with people's heads."

Harry rolled his eyes. "It's either that or Thor leaves to investigate alone and leaves us a person down. Take your pick, Cap."

A small clap was heard nearby, having everyone look to its source. Loki was quietly clapping his hands, and Tony had his hand mock dabbing invisible tears from the corners of his eyes and exaggerating a sob.

"Our child is growing up," he said sweetly, smiling at Harry.

"So, what will it be?" Harry prompted.

Steve sighed, giving a silent nod for him to proceed with the mind-invasion.

While Clint, Natasha, and Steve handled the Maximoff's and Klaue, Tony worked on contacting a Wakandian representative to turn Klaue over to them, and Loki aided Harry in helping with the dream-like trance he was going to put Thor back into. Loki appeared nervous about it, and decided to question Thor on the decision.

"Are you certain this will reveal something as crucial as you say, Brother?" he asked hesitantly. "Surely the dream meant nothing."

"You say that as if there isn't a high, more cosmic issue brewing, which is disappointing coming from you, Loki," Thor replied, shaking his head. "You of all people have been exposed to exceptional power the most between everyone here, yet you claim to not understand where it comes from."

"I know more than you ever will on what you speak of," Loki claimed, eyes glinting at the scathing dismissal from Thor. "Unlike you, I wish to protect what is precious to me for as long as I am capable, and here you are, as always, charging right into it blind."

Harry didn't understand the exchange, but had a feeling he was going to find out what they were talking about soon. He would be seeing everything Thor would see, and if whatever power that the scepter harnessed was related to it, then the Avengers really did have a bigger problem on their hands than they fully realized.

"Ready?" he asked the gods.

Thor nodded, preparing himself for the invasion. Loki stood nearby, warily observing Harry. He placed his hands on either side of Thor's face, putting his thumbs over the temples. Letting out a breath, Harry closed his eyes, Thor mimicked the action, and soon Harry focused on the dark tendrils drifting from his fingers and into Thor's temples and ears. The vision soon started bleeding into the darkness, and it became difficult for Harry to not get completely lost within it. People of Asgard celebrated and danced all around them, and he could see Thor looking around as well, at first seeming confused before gathering his senses and pulling away from the distraction that was the party. Harry followed him, though he had no corporal body in this, instead he observed what unfolded.

Flashes of Ultron's plans started occurring, and Harry found himself flinching slightly from the electrical charge that started to emit from Thor. He held fast, however, despite being physically shocked. Echoes of voices could be heard, or one voice, Harry couldn't quite tell, but then he saw the Stones, four of them revealing themselves from their hidden forms—Liquid Reality, Orb of Power, Space Cube, and the Awakening Scepter. It held the Mind Stone.

It all started to make sense now.

Harry pulled back from Thor's mind, looking straight into his eyes as the electrical charge around him subsided. Harry's own shadows that protected him from the shocks started to subside back as well, and a wave of new understanding swept over him. He shifted his gaze over to Loki, feeling shocked at the revelation shown to him, but then he felt his head slowly drift over his shoulder and his eyes roll back into his head, collapsing on the spot from over stimulation.

* * *

It was difficult to determine how to split up the team to intercept Ultron from kidnapping Dr. Cho as well as infiltrate whatever plan he had formed in Sokovia. Bruce opted for the least stressful choice; going back to the tower. Based on what Harry told the team on what he saw in Wanda, Pietro, and Thor's mind when he recovered several minutes later from exposing his and Thor's mind to the vast universe.

Ultron had decided being a robot wasn't good enough and found a way to create the ultimate being, he just needed the right tools to make it happen. His father opted to go with Bruce in order to help disable whatever it was Ultron was creating once retrieved, leaving Steve, Natasha, and Clint to pull their weight in obtaining said creation and rescuing Dr. Cho.

Tony managed to get into contact with a Wakandian representative to turn Klaue over to them, and they didn't waste any time arranging a rendezvous location for them to turnover the criminal before they left the continent. Pietro and Wanda, however, were detained by SHIELD for questioning and imprisonment.

Of course, this left Loki and Harry on their own again, and despite the minor quip between Loki and Tony in regards to this detail, were now on their way to Sokovia to further thwart Ultron's plans. Except now they had Thor to 'babysit' them and help on Steve's orders, of course, because everyone thought they both had to be closely watched at all times. They weren't really sure what to expect from the superbot who could be everywhere at any time, but Harry was confident in their abilities to at least cause enough ruckus to delay what was to come for a while so everyone else could catch up. The only issue is that they weren't sure what they were looking for.

"I suppose I can't say I am not well-traveled anymore," Harry said, snorting at his own joke. "New planet and two new countries within the same week is a new record for me."

Loki chuckled at this observation. "Perhaps when this is all taken care of we can take a trip somewhere together to further broaden your horizons."

"I like that. Shouldn't be too hard to convince Dad to go, either. Especially after once this mess is taken care of."

"Agreed."

"I'll even forgive the clever stunt he pulled on us to stay out of the mission," Harry said absentmindedly.

"It was not all a ruse, Harry," Thor chimed in, "Having you meet our mother was going to happen, it just so happened to work out in such a way to seem deceitful."

"What my brother is trying to say is, yes, they wanted us out of the picture for this," Loki clarified. "Considering it involved the scepter, I didn't object to it as forcefully as I could have. It was all to protect you."

Harry was a bit miffed at not being voluntarily involved in it originally, he has been training for six years now, which is ample enough time to be able to help. But he also knew it was for his own safety, even with the whole not able to die perk that came with the powers, he still got easily overwhelmed. Still, both Loki and Tony were amazing dad's and Harry cannot fault that. However, his exposure to the Stones were inevitable, they were technically a part of him, after all. What scared him was what it all meant, what would happen to him once he had these things in his possession? Would it have him come into his full power?

Maybe that was what Loki was meaning when he spoke to Thor, he wanted to protect what was most precious to him for as long as possible. He knew the entire time, and he made sure to protect Harry from this stage in coming into his abilities until he was certain he was ready.

Sokovia and the city of Novi Grad was soon in their sights, and all they had to go off of was that the church in the middle of the city held some kind of meaning to Ultron. So that is where they headed after landing the quinjet.

The three looked around, not seeing anything out of the ordinary within the church. Separating, they combed every inch of the place and turned up absolutely nothing.

"Ultron has to know we are here," Thor said, frustration lacing his words. "Why won't he show himself?"

"Because he knows we are looking," Loki reasoned, "He will keep himself hidden for as long as he can for his plan to take motion."

Harry sat in the chair that was centered in the room, leaning somewhat against the arm of the chair to appear relaxed and almost lazily lounging while the two brothers bickered. He could wait out his enemy, but it would be more convenient to speed up the process and flush him out sooner rather than later.

"Any ideas, Thor? You were here a few days ago after all," Harry pointed out.

"Hydra operated out of the large castle-like building on the cliffside, but we cleared that area out."

Harry got to his feet then, looking at Thor and shaking his head in disappointment. "And you didn't share this why? Ultron could very well have decided to operate there because of that whole 'Won't look again because it has already been scoured' saying, or whatever."

"You have a fair point," Thor agreed. "We should make haste."

* * *

It didn't take them long to get to the abandoned building. Unfortunately there were signs of activity within it. All exits were blocked off and heavily secured, making it difficult to get into it, but once they did, it was like walking right into a hornets nest.

The droids that Harry had become quite accustomed to seeing since Tony launched the Iron Legion all froze from their work and turned to the intruders. There were dozens and dozens of them, some worked on new and damaged ones, others busied themselves doing who knows what else. Harry could feel an overwhelming surge of energy erupt all around him, giving him a splitting headache and causing him to wobble unsteadily. He placed his hands over his temples and closed his eyes, rubbing them gently.

One of the droid's eyes turned red then, and the voice of Ultron was heard. "You Avengers are really becoming obnoxious."

He tilted his head slightly, honing in on Harry. "Ah, the boy. You are quite the anomaly, almost more so than I." The droid took a couple steps forward, enough to have Loki grab Harry to pull him back. Ultron let out an appalled scoff. "Now, now. I am not a child killer."

"Says the one who wants to put this world to its end," Thor said.

"I wouldn't see it as a tragedy, more of a mercy if you would. I'm sparing the young the turmoil of life and struggles of today and giving the system a hard reboot in its stead. It's an essential step to their evolution," Ultron said, raising a hand in the air. "The Avengers were supposed to be the exception to the otherwise dullness of humanity, and yet you've soiled your potential to be better than the rest. The beginnings to a more superior species. Unfortunately, you all will be nothing but collateral damage."

He closed his hand slowly, and the hivemind that he had on the droids started swarming them with no hesitation. The droid he spoke through eyes returned to blue and charged toward the distracted Harry with determination. Thor sent a bolt of lightning into the large space, but it only overloaded a few and juiced the rest, even activating ones that were disabled, animating them to fight too.

Harry braced himself for the attack, but Loki had interfered and managed to land a couple precise hits on three droids with his daggers, effectively disabling them.

"This needs to be called in to the others," Loki said, disabling a few more droids with daggers to the head and chest. "Disturbing this nest was not properly planned. Harry is already overwhelmed from how much energy is being used. Ultron is a product of the Stone."

Thor obliterated another droid as he spoke. "To do this we would need to return to the quinjet."

"Go," Harry ordered, looking at Thor. "I can hold my own."

As if to demonstrate, Harry thrust his hand out toward a small cluster of droids, the black tendrils shooting from his hand pierced them all at once. Thor nodded, taking out a stray droid for good measure before withdrawing back to the jet to report on what they found. Loki came up beside him, a fresh line of daggers in both hands.

"There are far too many for us to hold off for long," Loki said, scanning the hoard as more and more seemed to materialize. "You will overexert yourself again if we do not fall back."

Other droids started taking the disabled ones and pulled them back to repair just to send them back out to fight. Unfortunately Loki's daggers were only a temporary delay. Harry could take out the entire facility if he really focused, but risked falling into the Darkness if so. It might be the only way to contain this looming nightmare, however.

"I could do it, if you think it is the only reasonable solution," Harry said, completely dismantling a droid as he spoke and ignoring Loki's concern.

"No, if you do your father will kill me," Loki said.

The droid assault halted jarringly, and the remaining ones pulled the damaged and destroyed bots away faster than they had killed them. A more damaged droid came forward then, eyes glowing red and sending another sharp headache through Harry. "You know, I wasn't mad before. Your attempts to delay the unstoppable was amusing."

He destroyed the droid with his other robot form they came across at the ship then. He approached the two aggressively as he continued speaking. This had both Harry and Loki retreat backward, Harry stumbling from the searing pain he was enduring from the energy Ultron radiated.

"I've changed my mind. You're all infuriating."

At this statement, a much larger, shinier version of Ultron burst through his old frame, and Harry knew that it was made of vibranium. He looked to Harry then. "Perhaps they will realize this attempt to be heroic will fail when they face a loss when I take away something of theirs."

The hoard of droids ambushed the two from all sides now, effectively overwhelming the two magic users. Ultron went for Harry while he was preoccupied trying to get himself released from the hoard while crippling under the pain. Loki saw what was about to happen, breaking himself free just in time to use a quick replacement spell to pull Harry into his place. Ultron ended up grabbing Harry by the throat right as Loki switched spots. Ultron lifted him up by the neck, having him dangle in the air.

"Even gods have to die sometime," Ultron said, clenching his metal hand harder around Loki's neck, uncaring his target was changed.

Harry watched in horror, arms being held firmly to his sides so he couldn't do much. They also pinned him to a kneeling position to reduce the ability to move at all. He was reduced to just watching through blurred vision and struggled to stay conscious through his splitting headache as his Teacher and second father's life was slowly being snuffed out before him.

" _NO!"_

Harry exploded with darkness, throwing the droids that contained him backward and crumbling them into pieces. He was engulfed in shadows now, honing in on Ultron. The robotic face of his turned fearful, and his grip slacked on Loki, giving him a chance to breathe a full intake of air.

"What are you?"

Harry didn't want to hear Ultron talk anymore. The next thing he remembered doing was engulfing the robot into the nothingness that emitted from him, siphoning the very essence of what Ultron was out of him like he had with the Maximoff's. The amount of energy that fought against him was unexpected, and the process had forced him to press further against it, tapping into energy he knew would ultimately kill him again. It was the same energy that was expelled on Loki all those years ago, pulling the influence of the scepter from him, it spared the god then.

Soon, the droids all around them collapsed into piled of metal and wires as their leader was consumed.

The entire castle-like building collapsed in on itself from the struggle, effectively destroying Ultron's Hive.


End file.
